Cutting Off The Wheel

IMG_5774 (3).jpg450.22KB23 downloads I can make this chip and dip dish but can't get it cut off the plastic bat it just cuts it up throught the middle or near the edge near me. Does any one have any idea I can try to fix this, sad duck

It sounds like you are cutting it with the wheel stopped. If so try holding the wire tight and taut and cut while the wheel is turning. The wire should cut pretty close to the bat but you always have to compensate for the wire riding up a little by throwing slightly thicker than needed.

You might try throwing on a plaster bat. If you do it right, the pot just pops off the bat when it gets to the right stage, and you don't have to use a wire at all. The tricks to using a plaster bat are:
1. You need to wet the plaster before you plop down the ball of clay.
2. Make a nice undercut at the base.
3. Don't cover the finished piece until it pops loose.

If you are using a cutter that is capable of stretching like nylon fishing line or very thin wire you may not be able to use it on this piece. If you can get a cutter which uses fairly thick wire you should be able to undercut by pulling out as hard as you can on the handles in order to maintain taughtness. It may also help to saw the wire back and forth slightly as you slowly undercut and maintain taughtness. If none of that seems to work for you then you might considere using a long slicing knife or french knife or a long stiff putty knife. The putty knife would be much safer but a real knife would be much cooler and you could brag to everyone about the risks you take for your craft. Turn the wheel slowly as you work the point of the blade further under the pot. If you can cut halfway or more to the center in that way then you may be able to finish with a wire. It would probably help to wet the surface of the wheel/bat - it will reduce the "catching" of the blade on the clay if the blade takes some water along.

"All this of Pot and Potter--Tell me then, Who is the Potter, pray, and who the Pot?"Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

You might try throwing on a plaster bat. If you do it right, the pot just pops off the bat when it gets to the right stage, and you don't have to use a wire at all. The tricks to using a plaster bat are:1. You need to wet the plaster before you plop down the ball of clay.2. Make a nice undercut at the base.3. Don't cover the finished piece until it pops loose.

Sylvia

Thank you I'll try and get one didn't know they had such a thing. Thanks again sad duck

It sounds like you are cutting it with the wheel stopped. If so try holding the wire tight and taut and cut while the wheel is turning. The wire should cut pretty close to the bat but you always have to compensate for the wire riding up a little by throwing slightly thicker than needed.

can anyone help me with this?? need to finish this and just can't get it cut off without cutting it in the middle or near my side.

Hi Sad Duck, When I make flat plates I usually put a fan on it to stiffen it a bit. Leave the bat on the wheel so it is anchored, remover the splash guards if possible and use your wire to carefully cut it loose. Keeping it as flat against the bat as possible without lifting it. You might have to repeat after it stiffens a little more.Good luck !!!

I use canvas bats for plates and platters. Plaster bats are wonderful, but they can require a significant investment of time and/or money and they take up a lot of room. Just cut a canvas square large enough to overlap your platter by a bit. (You can buy canvas from a tent and awning shop or a marine supply place--hard to find at most fabric stores.) Dip it in slip to prime it (you only need to do this the first time--when it's still clean) and position it on a rigid (wood or plastic or whatever) bat. I like to smooth them down with a wide putty knife. Sometimes they can slip, but if you keep trying, you'll learn the knack of working the clay so that the canvas bat doesn't slip. Mostly it involves keeping some downward pressure, especially in the first stages of centering/throwing. Be sure to leave the bottom thick enough to trim. The thickness will also help you later, when you're removing the canvas bat.

When you're done making your platter, cut the canvas off of the wheel. Just pull your wire through under the canvas. Take the wooden bat off the wheelhead and carry it to the place where you'll be drying the platter. With a pair of needle nosed pliers, pull the canvas bat (and platter) off the wooden bat onto the drying surface. After the platter has become dry enough to support its own weight, turn it upside down and peel off the canvas bat. I slide the platter onto a wooden bat, place another bat on top of it, and turn the whole thing upside down as though it were a sandwich. This has to be done at the right time. Too soon and it will sag; too long and it will crack. Turn the platter right side up again and fix the rim.

If it's a large platter, trim it with double foot rings. A ring directly under the sauce dish would be nice. When the canvas has been used once, you only need to dip it in water to get it ready to be used again. I dip them in my slop bucket. You can use canvas bats for anything, but I mostly use them for platters and sometimes for especially large bowls--like sink basins.

IMG_5774 (3).jpg450.22KB23 downloads I can make this chip and dip dish but can't get it cut off the plastic bat it just cuts it up throught the middle or near the edge near me. Does any one have any idea I can try to fix this, sad duck

Nice chipper/dipper. I too use plastic bats. I just wait until the piece is hard enough to come loose when you flex the bat. Put the bat over your knee and gently flex it while rotating it. Be gentle. If the piece is too wet it will just flex. Timing is everything. Beth AKA MaddMudder!!!!! Bwaaahahahah